Arsenal have been told Shakhtar Donetsk’s valutation of Mykhaylo Mudryk will likely prevent them from completing a deal this month.
The Gunners continue to push to sign the winger, who has made no secret of his desire to make the move to north London.
However, two bids submitted have both been rejected and now Chelsea are increasingly interested in Mudryk, having held positive talks with Darijo Srna, Shakhtar’s director of football.
The club want £88m for Mudryk, though are expected to ultimately accept less and also allow a buyer to spread the fee across performance-related add-ons.
Arsenal are still leading the race for the 21-year-old, but they have been warned by Ukrainian football agent Igor Kryvenko that Shakhtar will not look at the situation “realistically” and are instead eyeing a huge sum to make up for previous mistakes in the market.
“Minimal,” Kryvenko, who does not represent Mudryk, told Footboom of the Gunners’ chances of securing the winger in January.
“Shakhtar won’t let Mudryk go for the money they are currently offering. €100m is an inadequate price.
“A player from the Ukrainian championship cannot cost more than, for example, a player from the Netherlands. You have to look at things realistically. There is a market value, and Shakhtar seem to be taking figures from the ceiling.
“The guy is in the ‘golden cage’. I know for sure that in the summer, Brentford offered good money for Mudryk, but the Donetsk team refused. It seems as if they want to reflect on their talent everything that they lost in the past failed transfers.”
